Dining in Argentina
If there is a heaven for carnivores, we are sure that all of the restaurants there are Argentine. Meatespecially beefis the main ingredient and focal point of the country's cuisine. Try
the Argentine national dish, parrilla: It's an overwhelming mixed grill of steaks, sausage and assorted organ meats. The Argentines also have a unique way of cutting their meat, so the shapes will
be a bit different. Typical meat dishes include bife de chorizo (a huge two-inch-thick steak), bife de lomo (short loin), the recognizable bife de costilla (or T-bone) and the simple chorizo (a tasty
pork sausage). Other favorite dishes include puchero (a tasty mulligan stew), tartas (vegetable pies) and empanadas del horno (a baked pastry stuffed with just about anything). The food found in Argentina's
Italian restaurants is somewhat distantly related to what you might find in Italy. Argentine-Italian food tends to be heavy and made with lots of cream. Pizzas and noquis (the Spanish word for gnocchia
pasta made with potatoes) are generally good. Other international restaurants (French, Chinese, Japanese, etc.) can also be found.
Try some of the rich desserts and pastries: flan, panqueques (a crepe dessert),
zapallo en almibar (a sweet squash in cream) or anything topped with dulce
de leche (a caramelized milk). Ice cream is particularly good in Argentina,
especially from the heladerias (ice cream shops) that make their own. In Latin
fashion, mealtimes tend to be much later than is customary in many other nations.
Lunch is around 2 pm, dinner starts at 10 pm. Bars, coffee shops and sidewalk
cafes are open well past midnight.